


A Birthday Gift

by Luna03



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/M, Fluff, let mai take a break smh, slight angst, ty lee is an A+ wingwoman, zuko being a good husbandtm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-09-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:07:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26303902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Luna03/pseuds/Luna03
Summary: I wrote this on a whim and this is my first time posting fanfiction. I wanted good content for these two and they deserve it. I got encouraged to post this so I hope people enjoy it. Constructive criticism is appreciated and remember to comment and kudos if you enjoyed it!!
Relationships: Mai & Ty Lee (Avatar), Mai & Zuko (Avatar), Mai/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 17
Kudos: 58





	1. A Birthday Gift (Chapter 1)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made some quick edits to the chapter, mostly starting new paragraphs when the dialogue starts since I've gotten comments about that twice, as well as the infamous "She could care less" line. Thanks for letting me know. I appreciate it!

Mai was exhausted. Beyond exhausted. She had never wanted to rest as much as she wanted to at this moment. When she agreed to become Fire Lady, she knew the hustle and bustle of royal life would keep her busy. But even she had to admit, this was ridiculous, even for royal standards. 

Nobody had taken this much fuss over her birthday, not even her. She didn't see the point if she was perfectly honest. So what if she was getting one year closer to the sweet release of death? That didn't matter. But apparently, it mattered to the Palace advisors as well as almost everyone in the Palace. It was her first birthday as a newly crowned fire lady, they screamed, of course, there was to be a big celebration. If anyone wanted to scream right now, it was her. 

All she wanted to do was shout for everyone to stop and just let her lay down for the next 24 hours, but that wasn't an option. No, she needed to oversee every single decision that was being made, everything needed to be perfect. She couldn't care less. Of course, she always had the option of canceling everything, instead of spending the day curled up in bed with her husband. Though to her, she didn't have that option. She was already on the bad side of many advisors due to canceling some events in the past few months that she deemed 'not worth the time'. She shouldn't care, she told herself that she didn't care. But a part of her always did. She didn't want to upset people even more, no matter how much her body ached for rest. Anyway, Zuko wanted this to go forward, as well as her family. She could make an exception for them, surely. 

"Lady Mai?.." 

She blinked a few times, looking to the servant in front of her who was holding out 2 different, though very similar to her, shades of red frilly fabric. Had she zoned out in the middle of the conversation? She didn't doubt it, her eyes had been struggling to remain open this entire time. She found it surprising that she hadn't collapsed from exhaustion yet.

"Lady Mai, are you feeling alright?.."

She breathed in and out and nodded her head.

"I apologize, I was lost in thought."

"Can you please choose the type of fabric that we'll be using for the tables?"

She looked between the two, not having a particular interest in either of them. She pointed to one of the fabrics with her finger, the black nail polish which she had applied this morning on her nail noticeably chipped, from her relentless picking at it due to her nervousness. The servant nodded and walked away.

When she knew they were out of earshot, Mai breathed out a frustrated sigh. Hopefully, that was the last thing she had to do for that day, but of course, it wasn't. The minute she turned around to find the nearest seat to relieve her aching legs and feet from the constant walking and standing up from the exhaustion that was her birthday planning, her path was cut off by another servant. She recognized them from the Palace kitchen from her frequent trips down there to eat her anxieties away and she let out another sigh. She enclosed her hands into the sleeves of her dress, joining them together to conceal the fact that her hands were balled into fists, her fingernails digging into her palms. This was getting frustrating, she just wanted to lay down or take a seat. But of course, that was a luxury that wasn't reserved for her. 

By the time the planning was over it was well into the night, and her legs were screaming for relief from the standing. Zuko was probably still in his meetings, being lectured on his role in the festivities to come. She hoped at least he had a break from today. As she slowly made her way towards her and Zuko's shared bedroom she got a glimpse of herself in the mirror. She had never seen herself this exhausted. Even during her time in prison she still somehow managed to keep herself together. She quickly tore her eyes away from it, biting her lip in frustration as she tried her best to pick up the pace, even if her body screamed in protest. The moment she neared the doors she spotted the usual guards outside, Suki and Ty Lee. 

Part of her hoped that she could go inside without question, but of course, today wasn't her day. Upon seeing her, Ty Lee immediately smiled and rushed over to her, giving her a huge hug. 

"Mai! I haven't seen you all day, you left so early and you usually come back for an hour for alone time. Oh, and happy early birthda-.."

Ty Lee was cut short of her outburst when Mai practically slumped into her arms, her head resting on her shoulder. Ty Lee soon felt Mai's breathing turn heavy and tears fall down her Kyoshi uniform. She was crying? In all their years of friendship, Ty Lee couldn't think of a time where she'd seen Mai get this upset. As her tears turned to sobs Ty Lee practically cradled her in her arms.

"Mai?... Hey, everything's okay.." She looked over at Suki and motioned her to come over. Suki nodded with a sympathetic look in her eyes and walked over to the two girls, slowly placing a hand on Mai's back, rubbing her hand up and down in a comforting motion.

Mai and Suki's relationship had slowly grown over the months and the three of them had formed a close sort of bond. After a few moments, Mai lifted her head, her face sunken, and tear stains trailing down her cheeks. She tried to quickly wipe them off with her sleeves, assisted by Ty Lee who gave her a sad smile. Finally, Mai spoke. 

"I'm so sorry. You shouldn't have to see me like this.." Ty Lee shut that down quickly with a quick squeeze of Mai's hand as she held it in her own.

"Don't you dare apologize Mai. Even stoic people like you need to let out their emotions once in a while. And Suki and I are always here for you if you need to do that, Zuko as well I hope.." Mai nodded.

"Yeah. I'm just..for fucks sake I'm so exhausted".

Suki nodded and placed a comforting hand on Mai's shoulder. 

"Hey it's alright, we figured you would be. Those guys getting you up at some ungodly hour and making you do these decisions all day would exhaust anyone out, and you're allowed to be upset and frustrated about it.." Mai let a very small smile creep onto her lips at Suki's words. She took a shaky breath and sniffled.

"Whatever, it's alright... I-I..” She took a deep breath, her cheeks going red as she realized that she had just stuttered.

“I just have to get over it... I'm the Fire Lady after all, and other people want this celebration, it's not all about me.." Her face once again took a sunken expression, a tear escaping her eye at the thought of repeating this against tomorrow, but with a more rigorous schedule.

"I'm going to bed. I'll see you both tomorrow.." Mai opened the doors to her and Zuko's shared bedroom and shut them behind her, leaving Suki and Ty Lee exchanging worried looks.

Zuko breathed out a sigh of relief as he watched the last advisor leave the meeting room, thankful that this was finally over. He had been rigorously told what was expected of him tomorrow concerning the festivities and was well versed in the words he had to recite and where he had to be, and at what time. He was sure it was late, the yawn that escaped his mouth surely made that evident enough. He just wanted to get back to his room and fall asleep next to his wife. He smiled at the thought. No matter how much he said it in his mind or out loud, the fact that he got to call Mai his wife was still surreal. His only thought was of her, probably asleep in their bedroom as he walked down the hall. 

As he came to the double doors that led into his bedroom he caught faint words that Ty Lee and Suki were whispering to each other. 

"We need to tell him, surely she can't be happy with what's going on if she came to us like that.." Tell him what? And which she were they referring to? He caught Ty Lee's reply as he took a few more steps forward.

"Are you kidding me, Suki? She'd kill us! But you're right, she looked so upset and tired, we have to do somethi-"

"If I may interrupt, what are two talking about?.." Both of the ladies froze as they turned to see Zuko standing before then, who had a stern but confused expression.

Ty Lee sighed and nodded at Suki, who nodded back at her. Ty Lee started the conversation. 

"Zuko, it's Mai. I think the planning for this is getting to her, badly.." His expression softened as Ty Lee explained.

"Getting to her how? Is everything alright?.." He hadn't noticed anything wrong with her this morning. He hadn't even seen her throughout the day, maybe something had changed. Suki shook her head.

"When she came here only half an hour ago, she practically collapsed into Ty Lee and started crying. She was exhausted and tired. I don’t think she even wanted these big celebrations, she said she was doing this for you and her family..”

Zuko's eyes widened as Suki told him what had happened. He had seen her mad plenty of times, but he had never seen her cry. Was she alright?

“She was crying?..” He said this to himself in a hushed voice. trying to register what he had been told. He resisted the urge to burst through those doors and hold her, to comfort her, to reassure her that everything was going to be alright like she had done for him those many times he had woken up from nightmares about his father and sister. But at that moment he knew what he needed to do before he could reassure her things were going to be fine.

He gave a firm nod. "Thank you for telling me this, I'll be back in a few minutes". He practically ran down the hall, shouting for a nearby servant to call for his advisors once again. He didn't care if they needed rest, this was much more important. His wife wanted to rest and he was going to give her that, even if it was the last thing he did as Fire Lord.


	2. A Birthday Gift (Chapter 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember to comment and kudos if you enjoyed it. Constructive criticism is appreciated. Enjoy reading!
> 
> EDIT: Made a quick change with the whole starting a new paragraph with the dialogue thing. Enjoy!

As the sun peered through the large window next to her side of the bed, Mai awoke to bright light in her eyes. She let out a small groan of frustration, which slowly turned into a whine as she remembered what today was, her birthday. It was the crack of dawn and any minute she'd be woken up by one of the planners to be whisked away and fitted for her outfit, as well as caked with too much makeup. A frown graced her lips as she realized all this, turning on her other side to face away from the window. As she turned around she saw her husband was missing, which just put her in a worse mood. All she wanted today was to have a few moments with him, at least in the morning. Even if it was a single kiss, she would cherish that kiss like it was the last one he'd ever give her. 

She sighed and closed her eyes, preparing to try her best to fall asleep and ignore the aching that remained in her body. She was just getting relaxed when the entrance to her bedroom opened, followed by a set of footsteps coming to Zuko's side of the bed. Mai opened her eyes and felt herself let out a sigh of relief when she realized who it was. It was Zuko. He smiled at her, setting down a tray that he was carrying on a nearby dresser, before leaning over the bed to give her a quick peck on the lips. Mai happily returned the kiss, and after a few seconds, they pulled apart. 

"Hey, I'm glad you're up. Are you doing alright?.." Mai was slightly confused, but she decided to lie, so she nodded.

"I'm glad you're here. But, where were you? And what's that?.." She motioned to the tray on the dresser as she sat up in bed. Zuko took ahold of the tray once again and sat it over her lap. 

"What does it look like? I brought you breakfast." It was one of those rare moments where Zuko got to see Mai smile, though it was small, it still meant the world to him. She looked at him and went to say something, but decided against it. She instead motioned him to sit beside her, so she could lean her head on his shoulder as she ate. Zuko watched her happily, wrapping an arm around her waist. It was obvious she was growing the slight bit concerned at the absence of the planners coming to get her ready, but he would explain it in due time.

After a comfortable silence fell between them, only filled by the sounds of Mai eating, she asked him a question. 

"This might be vague but, what's going on? Last time I checked there wasn't any time in my busy schedule for breakfast.." Her eyebrows knitted together in an annoyed expression, remembering the events of yesterday. Zuko raised a hand to her cheek and stroked it tenderly with his thumb.

"Everything's okay... First of all, before I explain, promise not to get mad at Suki and Ty Lee?.." Mai froze, dropping the piece of food she was about to put into her mouth. Oh Spirits, he knew.. He knew about what happened yesterday, they told him how she broke down in tears in front of them. Her mouth opened and closed trying to get the words to come out, but after a few failed attempts, she simply nodded. Zuko, sensing her apprehension, took hold of her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing it lightly.

"Hey, don't worry. It's not their fault, they were worried about you and I made them tell me. Now, I'm gonna ask again and for your sake, I would like you to be truthful. Are you alright?.." Mai could barely hold back as she suddenly grabbed a hold of Zuko, burying her face in his chest as she let out her frustration in the form of tears and sobs. Zuko gasped, but quickly recovered from the surprise as he wrapped his arms around her, one rubbing comforting circles into her back and one brushing its fingers through her hair. 

"Hey, Shhh... It’s okay... You're gonna be okay.."

After a few minutes, maybe more, Mai seemed to have calmed down, the only sounds coming from her being heavy and labored breaths. She pulled back from him, bringing her hands up to wipe her tears away, but before she could do that Zuko took her hands in his, instead choosing one of his hands to wipe her tears away gently. "How can you be so beautiful, even when you're crying?.." He said that to himself, and Mai heard it, judging by the light red color that came across her cheeks. She shook her head and sniffled, looking up at him with tears still in her eyes. 

"I'm so sorry. I-it's just been a lot. We never even had this much preparation for our wedding for goodness sake. I don't care, why should they?!"

She let out a sigh as she realized her last part came out more yelling than anything. "S-sorry I'm just.. I'm tired Zuko. I don't want these celebrations, all I wanted was a long lie in bed, and a day with my husband…" She finished her explanation with a hug, wrapping her arms around his waist as a sort of plea. She was scared that if she let go of him she'd be taken away for another day of rigorous planning and suffering. Zuko kissed her on the forehead and continued to brush his fingers through her hair. 

"Well, don't worry, you're going to have just that. Mai, I've canceled your birthday celebrations.."

Between 'Will you marry me?' and 'I love you', those were the most romantic words Mai had ever heard Zuko say. 

"Wait really? You're not joking? This isn't a prank or something like that?.." Zuko chuckled and leaned down to kiss her, nodding afterward. He smiled as he spoke.

"I'm serious... The minute I heard how upset and tired you were at the expense of that stupid event I met with my advisors and canceled the whole thing.." Mai opened her mouth to speak but Zuko put a finger on her lips.

"And I don't wanna hear it, Mai, I couldn't care less about what your family or my advisors want. Your happiness is above all else.." She smiled a big and happy smile that Zuko never got to see often. "How did it go? They couldn't have been too pleased with you about it.." Zuko chucked. "Well.."

The meeting hall's energy was very tiring since most of the Fire Lord's advisors were half asleep. They had just been getting their rest when they had been awoken abruptly by a servant telling them that the Fire Lord needed them urgently for a meeting. Of course, they were all against it but, you can't exactly refuse a meeting with the Fire Lord. Once all the advisors had taken their places, Zuko stood up at the head of the table, with a serious and stern expression. 

"I'm sorry to have dragged you all from your rest, but this matter is urgent. My reasons for this meeting concern for the celebrations tomorrow, Fire Lady Mai's birthday. I must tell you all-" Before he could continue, an advisor, the head of the planning committee for this event, spoke up.

"Do not worry Fire Lord Zuko, the preparation has all been taken care of by us, I'm sure Lady Mai will be most pleased with our choices and so will you. She has been informed of the tight schedule involved and we're sure that-"

"I'm canceling the festivities." That statement certainly brought a hush over the room. All the advisors stared at him as if he had lost his mind, especially the one who had just spoken up. 

"Surely this must be some sort of joke? We have everything planned! The vendors have been informed, the kitchen has been preparing food since yesterday!" Zuko stared at him with an unflinching gaze.

"Then we will find some other event to use the food and the vendors for. They will be fully compensated for their services, but they will be told that they will no longer be needed, at least for now. My word is final."

"Now just wait a minute! I have given up my valuable time to plan this event, I'm sure if we got Lady Mai she could talk some sense into you!" Zuko's stare at the man turned into a glare. 

"Yes, I understand that. But what you have failed to notice is the burden that the event and planning have taken on my wife. Tell me, and be truthful, or else. Did Lady Mai get a chance to rest during your constant planning? Because as I'm aware, she didn't. And as I'm also aware, she did most of the planning as well. Now I don't know what you were doing during those times but if you had such a tight schedule, and as I'm told by you, planned almost everything, then couldn't you have scheduled breaks for her?..!" The advisor's face turned pale and he stuttered.

"F-Fire Lord Zuko, you must understand that this is an important event, and if Lady Mai had wanted a break she should have spoken up about it. And frankly, I don't see what the trouble is, I've planned events much more rigorous than this, and I think she's overreacting. A noble doesn't know the meaning of hard work if you ask me-!"

He soon realized what he had said when he felt the heat radiating from the head of the table. If looks could kill, that advisor would be six feet under. Zuko's hands were on fire as he glared daggers at the advisor." How dare you insult her like that!" The advisor fumbled for a reply and settled for simply kneeling and begging forgiveness. Zuko however, managed to calm himself down, remembering the ways Mai managed to bring him down from his anger. His glare was still there but most of his anger was thankfully gone. 

"I accept your apology, and for your outburst, you can make up for it by clearing my schedule for tomorrow, I'll revise the important matters the following day. You may go back to your quarters and rest, the meeting is adjourned."

He walked towards the doors that exited the meeting room and put his hand on the doorknob and was about to open the door but before he could, the advisor yelled. 

"What's more important to you? Your duty as Fire Lord, or Lady Mai?!" He felt the doorknob become hot under his touch. He turned to them as he opened the door, and said one last sentence before leaving to return to his chambers.

"That's a completely foolish question. It always, and forever will be, Mai."


	3. A Birthday Gift (Chapter 3)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember to comment and kudos if you enjoyed it! :D
> 
> EDIT: Made some paragraph edits.

Mai stared up at him as he finished his explanation, a loving expression on her face. 

"Thank you for doing this Zuko. I'm so grateful, you have no idea." He smiled and squeezed her hand that was currently wrapped around his own.

"I had to do it, I couldn't bare to even hear that you were upset. And I can't bare to watch you be upset, so please, if this ever happens again I beg you to come and let me know.." She nodded, reaching up to place a kiss upon his cheek.

"I love you.."

"I love you to.." For a few moments, they lay together on the bed, a comfortable silence between them. Mai could feel herself slowly drifting back to sleep, but before she closed her eyes, Zuko spoke up.

"I know you're very tired and probably sore, so how about I have the maids draw us a bath so we can both relax? After that, I promise you can get your long rest. And I'm sure it'll help you sleep better." Though the idea of sleeping all day was appealing, the thought of laying in the bath with Zuko won her over. With a sigh, she sat up. 

"Alright, that does sound nice." He nodded and placed a kiss upon her forehead before standing up and heading to the doors.

"By the way you better not move from that bed, I know for a fact that if you tried to walk after yesterday you'd probably collapse on the floor." Mai let out a small giggle at his comment before nodding.

"Alright, not that I was planning to leave anyway. Oh, can you send Ty Lee and Suki inside? I want to talk to them." Zuko raised an eyebrow. 

"You made a promise not to kill them, remember?" She rolled her eyes and smirked.

"I'm not gonna kill them, just send them in for goodness sake." Zuko let out a small chuckle that hung in the air as he left the room. After a few moments, the doors opened back up with Suki and Ty Lee entering. Before Mai could get a word in Ty Lee started rambling.

"I'm so sorry! Suki told me to do it, it was her idea! You just looked so sad and Zuko heard us and I knew he'd make things right I just-!"

"Thank you.." Both Ty Lee and Suki raised an eyebrow.

Suki spoke. "You're thanking us?... I thought you were gonna be mad if anything.."

"I'm not mad.. I'm thankful you both told him honestly. You know what I'm like, I'm stubborn.."

Ty Lee giggled nervously and nodded. "Yeah... Are you doing any better?" 

She nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. Everything's canceled and I couldn't be happier."

Suki sat on the foot of the bed, mouth slightly agape. "No way, Zuko canceled it?"

Ty Lee did a small happy dance and threw her arms around Mai. "Yay! That's great! I knew you probably wouldn't have liked any of those stuffy royal celebrations anyway! Oh uh, happy birthday! I wanted to burst in say it with confetti and stuff but I didn't wanna interrupt you both in case you were….y'know, busy-" Mai gasped, her face bright red. Suki's face appeared to be bright red through her makeup.

Mai smacked Ty Lee lightly on the shoulder in protest." Ty Lee, you can't just say stuff like that-! Why would you even think that?-!" 

Ty Lee shrugged and giggled. "Oh my god, those expressions are so cute! I bet Zuko's seen it a hundred times when you guys get, y' know-"

Suki covered Ty Lee's mouth with her hand. "If you say 'busy' I'm going to assign you to guard another room, understood?" Ty Lee nodded as Suki took her hand away from her mouth.

Ty Lee stuck her tongue out at her. "If you weren't wearing gloves I totally would have licked your hand-"

The conversation was interrupted by a couple of maids coming into the bedroom and immediately heading into the washroom, shutting the door behind them, closely followed by Zuko. "I hope she hasn't chewed you both out too much." Mai glared at him but couldn't hold off the smile that graced her lips. 

Suki let out a small laugh and shook her head. "Nah, she wasn't too bad. Anyway, I think we'd better leave you alone."

"Yeah leave you two alone to get busy-" Ty Lee was yanked off the bed by Suki as she threw the smaller girl over her shoulder.

"Oh come on that was meant as a joke, I swear!" Ty Lee only managed a very loud 'Get it, Mai!' before Suki slammed the doors behind her.

The couple shared a look of disbelief before slowly dissolving into laughter. Each other’s laugh was a delight to the other, along with all the other details that came with it. Like for instance the way Mai's nose scrunched up and her eyes closed, or the sight of Zuko's rare smile and the way he had to slap the nearest surface, usually being his own leg when he laughed. Each of them loved the little things like that that only they could revel in seeing. They both eventually calmed down, their cheeks both red from their fits, Mai's more so from Ty Lee's explicit comments, but she would take that to her grave. 

Eventually, both of them relaxed against each other, listening to one another's breathing. As time passed the maids eventually came out from the washroom, one declaring that the bath was ready, before both of them promptly left. 

Zuko stood up and walked around towards her side of the bed as she motioned to stand up as well. "Don't you remember me saying that you probably can't walk?"

Mai rolled her eyes. "Shut up, I can walk on my own." As soon as she said that she stood up, her legs immediately giving away under her as she yelped and practically crashed into Zuko's chest.

Zuko's face had a noticeable smirk while Mai's had a pouting expression. "Okay so, maybe my legs are numb from just laying in bed all day.." 

He let out a small chuckle. "Alright then, no matter, I was gonna carry you anyway." Before Mai could register what he said she was suddenly swept up into his arms, a small squeal of surprise coming from her lips as she desperately clung her arms around his neck. He simply laughed and kissed her cheek as she turned away from him, clearly embarrassed.

"You could have given me some type of warning you know-!"

"I could have, but you wouldn't have given as cute as a reaction if I did!~". Mai simply continued to pout and bury her face in his neck as he carried her to the washroom.

The room felt warm as they entered, steam rising from the center of the room where the maids had filled an elegant white tub with water. Zuko set Mai down on a nearby stool that was next to her vanity. She would spend hours each day in front of it, perfecting her usual hairstyle. Zuko didn't mind, it was nice to see her so concentrated on trying to not have one hair out of place. It was rare that he ever saw it down, but when Mai allowed it, the sight always amazed him. Both of them began undressing, facing away from each other to give the other privacy. Of course, they had both seen each other naked before, but for some odd reason, it was still an embarrassing situation for them both. 

Zuko got into the bath first, testing the water in case it had gotten cold. He didn't mind, he could always heat it himself anyway. He sat down, looking towards Mai as she un-did her buns that usually sat in her hair. As she did this, a cascade of black hair fell down her back, almost like a cloak. He couldn't help the smile that came onto his face as he stared at her. God, she was beautiful. She stood up, the edge of her hair covering the whole expanse of her backside, which she was thankful for. She turned around and Zuko held out a hand for her to help her in. As she slowly stepped into the tub she let out a pleased sigh, practically sinking into the water with her back against Zuko's chest. 

"I never thought anything would feel as good as laying in bed, but this is a close second." He chuckled and wrapped his arms around her. 

"It is pretty relaxing, I don't know why I don't share baths with you more often."

"Because if we did, we'd never get out of them." He nodded.

"You have a point.." Her hands ran through her hair which she had shifted to flow over her shoulder. She had learned from experience to do that before sitting down, having your hair as a seat isn't the most pleasant experience.

One of Zuko's hands ran through her hair while the other rested on top of her stomach. Mai blushed, being reminded of the small chub that she had developed over the past year. She had less and less time to train with her daggers and had spent more and more time in the Palace kitchen, eating anytime she felt the least bit nervous. It was a habit that she thought she had managed to nip in the bud years ago due to her parent’s nagging, but old habits die hard. 

Sensing her slight apprehension, Zuko kissed her lightly on the cheek. "You look as beautiful as ever, okay? I think it's cute." He finished his comment with a poke to her stomach, which made her let out a small squeak.

"Zuko I swear, I will splash you! I don't care if this water goes everywhere-!" He couldn't help the small laugh that escaped him as she pouted.

She sighed. "I mean if you think it's cute I'm not gonna object... You say that about everything about me though, I feel like if I asked you to pick the one you'd have a crisis~.."

He rolled his eyes. "I could choose." 

She smirked. "Fine, choose then. And I promise I won't get mad at whatever you pick, as long as it’s appropriate.."

He thought for a few moments, laying his chin on her shoulder. "Your hair. I don't know why but I think I like your hair best. It’s so long and smooth and elegant.."

She tried to hide her blush that came onto her cheeks. "Hmph, fine... That's a good answer.." They lay silent for a few more moments, simply enjoying their skin to skin contact. It wasn't until Mai took a good look at her hand that she decided that they should get out, her fingers were all wrinkly and she hated it when they got like that. She stood up and got out of the bath, making sure to wring all the water out of her hair before wrapping a towel around her body. Zuko quickly followed her and they both walked back to their room.

A silent agreement between them, they both sat down next to Mai's vanity in the corner of the room where Zuko insisted that she sit as he braided it. She didn't know why he had such a fascination with doing this but if it made him happy then she was happy to let him indulge. She had always tried out braids once or twice as a hairstyle but could never seem to do them right. Though for some odd reason, Zuko seemed to do them almost perfectly. 

Once he tied it at the bottom she lay it over her shoulder, admiring it in the mirror. "I love it~.." He kissed her cheek as they both stood up, moving over to their bed where they both got in, planning to spend the rest of their day there.

Zuko turned to her, smiling. "Have you had a good birthday?.."

She lay her head on his chest and closed her eyes, a genuine smile on her face. "It's been the best birthday ever.."


End file.
